Amaranth- or, the story of slowly dying
by Zoe Mae Rae
Summary: Esther- a naive, depressd train wreck. BeetleJuice- Ghost with the most, swindling, and iritated, ready to re- appear after 30 years. Lydia- in over her head.
1. Chapter 1

{Hiya! This is my second try with this fic, so it may sound pretty familiar :p I just love BeetleJuice and I want to get this fic perfect!}

Esther stepped down off of the last bus to nowhere and looked around herself in awe. Nowhere- Winter Rivers- was breathtaking. She breathed in the lean, crisp air and it felt delicious in her lungs. An involuntary shiver, and a smile took her. Esther's thoughts tumbled around like popping popcorn in her head; the sight of the trees, and the grass- green was everywhere- it was so perfect, and the quaint town was lovely, and topped with a gorgeous hill and a looming, beautiful home. The freshness of it all made her feel alive. If only for a moment.

She closed her eyes, trying to keep the bright feeling of cold mountain air on her bare arms. Suddenly- there came a honk, of the car variety. It was startling; and she dropped her bags as she turned sharply to find it, visibly frightened. Behind her was a shiny green convertible, with the hood up. Inside it was a beautifully aging, delicate, pale woman with deep brown eyes.

Lydia felt bad for honking- immediately. She should have known not to alarm the shell shocked girl. She watched helpless as the girl turned at her, hair flying out of it's loose braid at all angles- each one trying to escape as it's thrown. Lydia thought to herself a silly metaphor about how her hair looked like spikes, and the word bristle. The girl certainly had bristled, eyes wide open and mouth in a perfect "o."

Esther composed herself, gave half hearted giggle and scurried to pick up her things. "Hullo Ms. Deetz" She called softly through the car window.

Lydia turned the car off and stepped out to greet the girl. "Hi, how are you?" She smiled, and Esther smiled back weakly. Everything about small talk made her uncomfortable. She was very much of the "Nothing much worth saying out loud" lot. Not to mention that she generally was people weary- and now, travel weary now that she thought about it.

"I'm okay," Esther looked up, and away from Lydia "I really like it out here."  
Esther hugged her bag to her chest tighter and breathed in, deep in thought. Lydia sighed, and sensing Esther's inability to function, grabbed her suitcase and proceeded to load up.

"c'mon, kid, let's get you settled in, okay?" Esther nods, and loads a third bag, and herself in behind Lydia.

Soon, they're winding up the driveway of the Deetz family home. The drive was quick, wordless, and painless for Esther. Lydia lets her be, knowing firsthand that what emotional pain needed was space. She studies Esther, in quick sideways glances, noting fresh cuts on her arms and tear stains down her cheeks. The child was a wreck- and Lydia made a mental note to hide anything useful.

The house leaves Esther in a state of shock for a moment- she's never seen a real _home_ before. As Lydia unlocks the door, she turns around slowly, just trying to take it all in. She can't imagine what having a yard must have felt like, and lush, green forest to explore behind the house. This must be where so many of Lydia's breathtaking nature shots came from. Esther felt so excited and happy to be staying in such a peaceful, tranquil, beautiful place as such and honored that Lydia had wanted to share her personal haven with her.

"Ms. Deetz?"

"Yes?"

"I don't know how to thank you, I'm so-"

Lydia cuts her off, "I understand." After a few moments, she looks at the girl, "You can just call me Lydia when we're here."

Esther looks at her, blankly. "Oh."

"You don't need too. We're not working."

Her brows jump in understanding. "Okay."

The inside of the house is the best part- in Esther's opinion. It's warm and furnished cozily, with couches, and tables and a fireplace. The walls are papered in an outdated floral wall paper, and the windows were hung with equally outdated lace curtains. There's an elegant stairway leading to more rooms and the house oozes family. The halls are lined with family photos and paintings of horses.

"Wow."

"Do you like it?" Lydia is answered with a swift nod. "Come this way.

She walks gracefully up the staircase, so at ease, down the hall to the last door. Opened, it reveals a black canopy bed, blackout curtains, and a black vanity. She sighs, "This was my childhood bedroom. I haven't thought to change it, and didn't before you arrive here. I'm sure you appreciate this stuff, though."

Esther places her backpack gently on the bed. "I do."

"You know, we moved here after my father had a nervous breakdown. It was his escape, we came here so he could settle his nerves."  
"Did it work?"

"Not at first," Says Lydia, cryptically. "But there's time for stories like that much later." She shakes her head. "I'm sure you'd like some privacy. See you later. Bathroom is right next door, fresh towels are already in there. Kitchen is downstairs if you t hungry. I'll probably order Chinese. Hope you like Cantonese. . ." She trails away.

Esther sighs, and flops down on the bed. She didn't know if Lydia knew how much she appreciated her letting her come stay here. The past year had been terrible, and what she really, right now, needed was a sanctuary to collect herself in. She had her career threatened, her heart broken, her money stolen . . .

She cried silently into her bag. Her career was over. No one would hire her again for anything decent. Modeling was D.O.N.E. She pulled her sleeves back up her arms. They had only sagged down to her wrists, but to her, she was over exposed. A tentative finger slid down a sleeve to feel the raised bumps on her wrist. Disgusted, she dug her nails into her skin and drug them all the way up to her thumb before letting go.

This was the time to medicate, she knew it. That's what the doctor said. "Just take one if you start to get the urges, it's all okay, honey." She swallowed three, and then crawled under the sheets.

The mirror flashed green- for half a second. Esther shrugged it off as the drugs.


	2. Chapter 2

****  
Today was one of those wildcard days that no one could predict, Esther's first day alone. Lydia had to leave the house to go shopping. Esther was _really_ alone, today. She didn't know what to do with herself- she wasn't used to complete silence like this. Lydia never gave her the opportunity, and she was unsure if she would give it to herself, if she had the chance. Actually, it was a bad idea to leave her be in the first place. She had the scars to prove it.

Esther and Lydia had fallen into a morose pattern of life. Esther would stay in her room, playing around with her laptop. She'd only leave the house if she had to; to pick up things she needed, or to see her psychologist. Esther was never alone though. Lydia would mostly spend her time out, half photographing the world around her and the rest of her life in her dark room. Esther would tag along with Lydia, everywhere he went, but when it came to the dark room, the girl had some sense to leave her alone. After 30 years, and digitization for some reason that felt so strange to Esther- Lydia still used it. It was certainly strange, but she decided that if that's what made Lydia happy, then by all means she should. However- she would avoid it.

Normal teenage girls would probably have gone through Lydia's things, tried on her clothes, or just muck around doing something sneaky. Not Esther. She was scared; the house was old, creaky and foreign, so she popped a Valium and turned on the TV She sat down on the worn old couch, trying to relax, but she felt so tense, and such an anxiety. Not to mention, the reception was terrible.

The television was frightfully outdated, it was an old tube, with faux wooden paneling, and buttons that were just squares cut into the bottom that you pressed. It only picked up 3 stations, and they were a news broadcast, and two local stations. The station of choice was currently airing re-runs of The Maury Show, and every so often, the static would take over the screen with the faint outline of a yellow cowboy dancing about.

Esther had no fucking clue why it did that, along with why the hell Lydia still had the TV The thought of it made her wonder about the other old things Lydia had kept- she wasn't hoarding, she threw away trash, but if it worked, it would do. Lydia kept the TV Lydia kept the dark room, Lydia kept the microwave, the lawn mower, the PC . . .

The static interrupted her thoughts. It had stolen the screen again, and now it had audio. A man's voice doing a terrible southern accent intertwined itself with Maury- and during the critical part of the show. Maury yelled his trademark "You are- NOT the father!" and the cowboy yeehawed loudly, prancing and dancing around a horse, waving a noose.

The cowboy was becoming more and more invasive. He was coming in clear enough that Esther started to get worried. Something about it- the way it felt so unknown, set her off. So, she switched the television off. Once it was silent again, she felt even more silence was so forbidding and cold. She shivered, getting up to find something to eat.

Esther padded her way into the kitchen. It was beautiful, a mix of modern and country. There were top of the line appliances, cookware and machines (Minus the damned microwave that "Still Worked") all blended seamlessly with wood counters and brass knobs. She primed a pot of coffee- she poured the grounds into the machine and added water to brew. As she was lifting the pot over the sink to rinse out before using it- she caught another glimpse of that green flash and she nearly dropped the pot. Unlike before, she saw it's face.

She could have sworn that it was horrid looking. It had wild yellow hair that stood on all ends and these terribly sunken eyes that bore into her soul. But then again- she could be hallucinating. There was nothing in the pot except day old coffee.

She was quite unnerved, so she sat the pot down in the sink and went back into the living room. Esther replaced herself on the sofa after turning the tv back on. It was all she could do for herself. Esther was a useless creature, and she was well aware of that. All she really could do was remember next week to ask for a higher dosage of whatever she was taking for whatever anything was. She was at a point where she gave up fighting or trying to understand. she just took her pills like a good girl and didn't think at all.

This time, her TV went uninterrupted, and she quickly fell into a deep, restless sleep.

In her dream, she found herself in a very dark room. There were no windows, light was procured by a naked bulb hanging loose from the ceiling. It cast a yellow wash over the room and all it contained. There was a frame on the wall that housed a peculiar needlepoint. Stitched onto it was a long, striped snake worm, and the words "Dump, Sweet Dump." On the wooden floor there was a ratty, round, moth- eaten rug. The grey and green rug was topped by a large, overstuffed, red arm chair.

Next to it, there was a small tv dinner table with a moldy . . . something in a tray. It was multi- colored and fuzzy. Esther doubted that it was edible within this millennium. An arm cloaked in a plush red sleeve reached over and placed a cup of coffee down. The arm was pale as moonlight, and speckled with patches of green fuzz. The fingernails were dirty, long and pointed.

Esther woke with a start.

Thank you to sm4567 and 4ever-A-Nightmare for reviewing! I appreciate your time and effort! :)


	3. Chapter 3

Lydia had just gotten home, and found herself with more problems than expected. Firstly, there was a shuddering sobbing mess huddled in a corner in her kitchen. Secondly, the fucking coffee pot broke, and thirdly, she needed an exorcist. Well, in this case, an exterminator would do all the same, and probably for cheaper.

She set her keys down in the glass bowl by the door, and when she laid her eyes on Esther she just /knew/. Esther was tearing at her arms, clawing them and rocking back and forth in fetal position. She looked at Lydia with terrified, crazy eyes. Her hair was askew and looked like she had been pulling at it. A streak of blood crawled down her forehead, and Lydia ran to her side.

She pulled her arms away and peered deep into her eyes. "Esther," the young girl whimpered in response, "Did he hurt you?"

Esther just sobbed and shook her head "No." Lydia hugged her, and pulled her to her feet. Together, they struggled to get Esther's body upstairs. It should have been easier, given her slight frame, but her body just wasn't cooperating. She would tell her feet; "Go" and they would drag half an inch up and forward. She was sat down on her bed, and hugged again, before being berated with questions.

"Calm down." Esther nodded. "Try to tell me what you saw."

"I- I saw- I saw a man- in a suit, and a hat- and- and I've seen him elsewhere- on the coffee pot- and-" She starts sobbing again, hard. Lydia hugs her hard.

"Okay calm down. Chill, you're safe here, baby." Her sobbing subdues slightly.

Lydia looks around the dark room, eyes finally landing on the mirror, daring the bastard to show up. She would beat the snot out of that poltergeist. Being eaten by a sandworm should be enough to discourage him, shouldn't it?

Oh, but no, Beetlejuice was determined to get his ass exorcised. Years back, Adam and Barb had looked for him in the waiting room, to warm him about coming back to the house. Apparently, he didn't get the message.

What was he back for? Lydia? Revenge? Does he like the house? Does he like being hated? Lydia had no idea, and the answer to those questions would be unknown for a while, Beetlejuice was staying out. For now. She looked back down at the girl, and saw the blood on her face.

She lifted her hair up to inspect the wound and the girl yelped, "Stop Lydia- it's nothing!" She shook her off, but it was already too late. Lydia had seen the cuts- the red half moons dug deep into her scalp.

"Esther . . ." She breathed. "I'm so sorry."

They sat there in the silence for a moment, then Lydia got up and went to the small bathroom adjacent to the room. She turned the light on, and scanned the room, uncertain about what she might find. The room was normal. Nothing was reflecting differently, not the mirror, not the sink, not the tiles. He wasn't even trying. She grabbed a washcloth off of the towel rack and ran it under the towel. She wrung it out and the rough fabric scraped her soft hands.

Esther was still sitting where she had been left, laying in bed. Her eyes stared up at the ceiling blankly. Lydia laid the cloth on her scalp, pulling her back to earth.

As Lydia clutched the tan steering wheel, she found it hard to convince herself that she was doing the right thing. After cleaning Esther up, and calming her down, she drove her to the diner in town and left her there with a friend.

She felt terrible as she replayed the scene in her head. The diner was half empty, the lunch rush had just ended and Prudence was clearing the tables, bent over, rag in one hand, working hard, and a tray of dishes being balanced on her hip by the other. The tall woman scrubbed hard at a spill on the table before her, reddening, and letting her hair fall forward into her face.

Lydia pulled Esther in gently behind her shoulder, and dragged her behind herself as she approached the human giantess. Esther look bedraggled and scared, her eyes red and puffy, hair a mess and to top it off, she was underdressed. Prudence looked up at her, wide eyed and curious. The waitress wondered to herself about what the hell Lydia had gotten herself into. She tucked her rag into the front pocket of her apron and pushed her hair back.

Lydia stepped forward, still dragging the girl, with nervous smile. "Hello, Pru."

"Hey." Prudence looked at her hard, trying to read her face and understand.

"Have you met Esther yet?" "Uh, no" "Right." Prudence smiled at the girl who just stared back at her coldly. Esther truly did not mean to be rude, but she was frightened on so many levels about so many things. The people everywhere, they all seemed to stare at her, she was sure someone would want to hurt her. She was sure of it. Anyone could be a robber, or a murderer.

Lydia let go of Esther and she had a hard time not running out of the diner and into the woods. She was a coward of the highest degree. She wanted to hide from all eyes, protecting her shame and self loathing. She was pulled out of her thoughts by the mention of her own name.

"Look, Pru, I don't mean to impose on you but this is an emergency, could you do me a favor and keep an eye on Esther for me?"

Prudence looked at her, quizzically.

"Please, Pru?" Prudence looked at her friend, even more confused. She didn't want to have to watch a rotten kid from Hollywood. However, she had been friends with Lydia since they were young girls, her compatriot against the normal, snots who they were schooled with. She had to do it. She nodded her head.

"Yes, yeah, that's fine."

Lydia's demeanor relaxed, the burden was lifted from her, visibly. She exhaled deeply, and took her friends hands in her own. "Thank you Prudence, I'll be back for her soon"

And with that, She had left.

Now she was on her way home, to see what she could do about the dangerous haunt. She had to find a way to get to Juno, if anyone could find the solution to this mess, it was her. Juno was her case worker in the underworld, she started working with her when the Maitlands were haunting the residence, helping them along, and when they first encountered Beetlejuice. Juno and Beetlejuice had a history together. He had at one time been her protege, a helpful do gooder. But now he was her burden.

Once at home, Lydia made her way to the attic. The stairs creaked familiarly, as she stored her way up them. She felt the rough wrought iron key in her pocket and pulled it out to jam it in the unpainted wooden door at the top of the staircase. She thrust it open forcefully, flying toward the table in the middle of the large room. It had an old, out dated scale model of town, and thrown on top of it was a book. She took the large volume and sat down on a dusty loveseat.

She opened **The Living and the Dead; Harmonious Lifestyles and and Peaceful Co- Existences**, to the back. She thumbed through the index, looking for anything helpful. The book read like stereo instructions, and it was quite doubtful she'd find what she needed. After forty minutes of closing the book and just re opening it randomly, she found what she needed. The passage was titled_ Contacting your Case Worker_. Exactly what she needed.

_"In the even that you should have a dire emergency, you can contact your personal caretaker by visiting their office. Firstly, you must find a bible. You will bring this, and your handbook with you. Keep it on your person at all times. Next, you must draw on the ground an entrance into the world of the dead. Using chalk, draw a trap door. While drawing it, you must imagine a ladder being underneath, or you will die."_


End file.
